This Has Always Been Our Place
by chalantness
Summary: Prompt #107: moment. Wally/Artemis, Dick/Zatanna, Roy/Jade, Kaldur/Raquel, Conner/M'gann — He doesn't care what Artemis says. Mother's Day counts as a special occasion.


**Title: **_This Has Always Been Our Place__  
_**Rating:** T  
**Word Count:** 4,300+  
**Characters:** Wally/Artemis, Dick/Zatanna, Roy/Jade, Kaldur/Raquel, Conner/M'gann, and all of their kids  
**Summary:** He doesn't care what Artemis says. Mother's Day counts as a special occasion.  
**Prompt:** #107: moment  
**Other Inspirations: **written for Mother's Day

* * *

**This Has Always Been Our Place**

* * *

Artemis texted him saying that she's running a little behind and will be a few minutes late getting there, which is fine because it gives Wally time to give their names for a table. They try to meet for their lunch breaks at least three times a week, but they don't usually come to this particular café. It's fairly new and Artemis loves it more than she says, but it's a bit pricey and only for special occasions.

He doesn't care what Artemis says. Mother's Day counts as a special occasion.

The actual holiday isn't even until Sunday, but they're getting together with everyone else to celebrate and this is the only time he'll get her to himself.

Anyway, he's standing outside the door with his hands in his suit pockets and sort of just enjoying the nice day when he spots Artemis at the across crosswalk. She probably parked a few blocks down because she likes walking everywhere recently, even if it's just for a few extra minutes.

(She's paranoid she's gaining weight, which is absolutely dumb because can she not see her own reflection? _Beautiful_.)

She's wearing this white sundress that has a bow at her hip and a hem that swishes above her knees when she walks. Her hair is down and falling over her shoulders, her bangs curling around her face, and he swears every head within a mile radius turns to look at her. He doesn't have to like that people drool over her all the time, but he also knows you can't help yourself. You just _have_ to admire her.

(Like he said, she's _beautiful_.)

When she reaches him, he smiles and pushes her shades on top of her head so he can see her eyes. Then he puts his hand on the small of her back to kiss her, and he can feel her chuckling when he swipes his tongue against her lips to taste the fruity gloss.

She hums appreciatively as she pulls away. "We're here for lunch, Wally. Not dessert."

He laughs and follows her inside.

As soon as they're seated, and their waiter hands them their menus and promises to shortly, he asks, "How're the kids?"

"Fine. Your mother says they haven't fought once all day," Artemis informs, sounding both pleased and skeptical. Jayden and Ellie are kind of at those ages where they're starting to fight a lot more. It's nothing too serious, and the longest they've been "mad" at each other is overnight, but it's not like they enjoy it when their kids argue. He hopes it's something they'll get over soon.

"Hopefully they'll behave at the picnic on Sunday, too," he tells her.

She doesn't even look up from her menu. "We are talking about _our_ kids, right?"

He rolls his eyes.

"Well, Ellie will either be a perfect little angel or a trouble-maker, depending," she continues. He just looks at her, and she smirks. "Cory will be there, remember?"

She laughs at him when he pouts. "You just… Why do you have to go and _remind_ me about stuff like that?"

"She's _four_, it's a harmless crush." She sits back a little in her chair "Besides, Cory is _anything_ but a bad influence on her, or any of them."

"It's weird! I mean, Cory is like, _exactly_ like Kal, and Ellie is exactly like you," he explains like it should be obvious, and she just raises an eyebrow at him. "It's like watching a little you and a little Kaldur get together and it's just _weird_, okay?"

"Oh, my god," Artemis laughs. "You're such a dork."

He scoffs and is about to protest when their waiter conveniently reappears at their table. They place their orders and hand him their menus, and Artemis takes a sip of her lemon iced water and tells him to stop pouting before someone trips over his lip. Then of course he pouts some _more_ and she just shakes her head and calls him protective.

"She's my baby girl!"

"And, like _you_ said, she's also exactly like her mother," she replies. "She can handle herself."

"That's what I'm afraid of. You're all pretty and challenging, and if she's like that, too, guys will be all over her."

"Wally…" she says in this small voice, and okay, he feels a little (a lot) better knowing he can still make her blush, especially in public. "Come here," she tells him, and he meets her halfway when she leans across to give him a chaste kiss. He thinks he hears a few nearby tables sigh, and then remembers that this place is usually filled with a bunch of elderly couples who're all probably a bunch of old romantics.

As she's sitting back, he takes her hand in his atop the table and runs his thumb over her wedding band. She gives him her other hand, too, and he smiles when he tells her, "I love you."

"You better."

He rolls his eyes, shakes his head at her. "Say it right."

"Oh, my god," she laughs, but she meets his eyes, anyway, and runs her leg against his. "I love you, too."

... ...

Dick honestly doesn't understand why the Wayne Tech board can't ever make some big donation without wanting to host an event for people to fuss over, let alone why they need to get together for _four hours_ on a Saturday evening in order to plan one.

(How Bruce deals with this mundane socialite stuff on a daily basis, Dick will never know.)

But if he's being honest with himself, he just hates coming home late.

Between League and Wayne Tech obligations, he barely has time to be with his family. Sure, he sees Zatanna around the Watchtower in passing or if they happen to get overlapping breaks, and there are a few hours at home—one in the morning for breakfast and two or three at night before Maria's bedtime—where it's just the three of them. But it's never nearly as much as he'd like.

And when he pulls into the garage of their apartment complex and checks the dash, it's already twenty minutes passed Maria's bedtime.

He sighs.

At least tomorrow is Sunday and the only thing they have planned is a Mother's Day picnic, which isn't even until after twelve, so they'll have plenty of time to just sort of lounge around before they have to start getting ready. He wishes every day could be like that.

Zatanna is sitting on the couch when he walks in, feet tucked underneath her and a cookbook open on her lap as she thumbs through the pages. Her hair is pushed over one shoulder and her nightwear consists of blue flannel shorts and a double layer of gray tank-tops, but she could wear a ratty old T-shirt with baggy sweats and have knots in her hair, and she'd still be the most stunning thing he'll ever see.

They're pretty famous around Gotham, because he's the ward of billionaire Bruce Wayne and she's not only his wife but the star of her magic show, too. People know who they are and tell him all the time how gorgeous his wife is, as if he can't see it for himself or needs to be reminded of it.

He starts his mornings and ends his days with her in his arms.

Trust him. He _knows_ how lucky he is.

She looks up from her cookbook when she hears him walk in and gives him this _smile_ as he walks over to her and drops a kiss on her lips. "Hey," she greets.

"Hey. I'm sorry I'm so late."

She shakes her head. "Don't be. I got your text. And Selina called to tell me how you and Bruce couldn't get out of it, so we took Maria with us and made a girls' day out of it."

"Well, it still sucked that they robbed one of the only two days a week I actually get you and Maria to myself." She giggles and nods, completely sharing his thoughts. He pulls her legs aside so that there's room beside her on the couch to sink into, stretches her legs across his lap and takes the cookbook from her to look at what's on the page. "What are you looking for?"

"I want to know what to make for breakfast tomorrow."

"'Tanna."

"What?" He closes the book and holds it just out of her grasp when she tries to reach for it. "Dick," she laughs.

"It's _Mother's Day_ tomorrow, Zee," he reminds. "You're not making your own Mother's Day breakfast."

She just smiles and places a hand on his cheek, kissing him soundly.

The thing with Zatanna is, even on a day set aside to celebrate her she thinks it's too much attention. She always puts her family and friends before herself. It just proves how big her heart is, and honestly, he likes to be the one to spoil her. She doesn't go a _day_ without his attention (because he's a good husband and he knows it).

But even if he tells her (and shows her) on a daily basis, he doesn't think she entirely gets just how amazing and important she is. He hates to think that she takes herself for granted.

"I don't need a whole day to know how you and Maria feel about me," she assures. "I already know, and I love you guys even more."

"First of all, that's impossible," he declares matter-of-factly, making her shake her head. "And second of all, you're going to let me—let the _both_ of us—spoil you tomorrow whether you like it or not."

She bites her lower lip and gives him a _smile_ that makes him groan a little.

He just loves her _so much_. She drives him crazy and she _knows_ this, too, which is exactly why she does the things she does. He's entirely convinced this woman will be the death of him. (Well, this woman and their perfect daughter. Seriously, he doesn't know what he's going to do when boys start becoming interested in her. At least he knows he'll handle it better than Wally will with Ellie.)

She straddles his waist and pushes her fingers into his hair, leaning her forehead against his. "Did I tell you how much I love you?" he asks her.

Her breath is warm against his face as she laughs, "More than I count on both hands, and that's just today."

"Well, it's true."

"I know it is," she says simply. "So, do you want me to tell you how much I love you, too, or would you rather I show you?"

"I don't see why I can't have both," he replies, and she giggles when he has her pinned beneath him, whispers the words into his ear as her lithe fingers undo his tie and the buttons of his shirt.

_Seriously_. The _death_ of him…

... ...

Roy wakes up before Jade does and sneaks out of bed to not wake her, and even if she probably woke up a little when he moved around (she's a _light_ sleeper), she didn't show it.

He doesn't mind letting her sleep in, either. He knows she stayed at her mom's pretty late last night, because Paula leaves for this physical therapy thing today and Jade and Artemis decided to have dinner with just the three of them so they could still celebrate together. Plus, his plans kind of counted on her being asleep for another hour or so.

He walks across the hall and into Lian's bedroom, finds the little girl sitting on her bed with their cat, Candy, in her lap as she pets her and whispers to her softly.

She looks up when he walks in, though, and her face lights up.

"Daddy!"

Candy jumps off of her lap as Lian slides out of bed and runs over to her father, and he chuckles and pulls her into his arms before kissing her forehead. "Ready to help me make breakfast for Mommy?" She nods her head eagerly and then giggles behind her hand when he looks back at Candy and goes, "Does my other daughter want to come, too?"

Candy _does_ end up following them into the kitchen, and he sits Lian on the counter so he can feed the kitten a few treats and refill her food and water bowls.

As he washes his hands under the tap, he asks, "So, what should we make Mommy?"

Lian deliberates for a few seconds before replying, "Pancakes!" and he smiles because he knew that's what she'd want. She loves it when he tries to shape the batter into other things (her favorite are hearts and Mickey Mouse's head), and she likes adding the chocolate chips.

"Pancakes it is." He pulls open the fridge. "You know what else we could make, too? Cookies."

"We can't have _cookies_ for breakfast, Daddy!"

He reaches over to ruffle her hair. "I meant that we can bring them for everyone to eat at the picnic later."

She smiles excitedly. "Can I put them on the tray myself, Daddy?"

"I was hoping you'd ask that," he tells her. "Why don't you go grab your stool and wash your hands while I set everything up for you, okay?"

She nods and holds her arms out for him so he can set her back down on the ground.

Honestly, their daughter is the most precious thing ever, especially when she acts all adorable and strangely mature for a five-going-on-six-year-old like she is right now. He and Jade have joked countless times about how she's nothing like them because she's just so mellow and easily pleased in comparison.

But she's totally _their_ daughter, too.

She looks just like Jade, with all of this thick, dark hair and an exotic face. She's kind of confident and sarcastic in the most hilarious ways ever like Jade, too, but her eye roll? That's all his. She usually doesn't lose her temper too often, because she's infinitely more patient than either of them combined, but if you're on the receiving end of one of her moods then you're pretty much _screwed_.

Anyway.

He's pretty much finished flipping enough pancakes to feed the three of them by the time Lian's done rolling cookie dough (they bought a premade tub from one of her school fundraisers) into balls and spreading them out on the baking pan. He turns off the stove burners and slides the cookies into the oven, setting the timer as Lian is washing her hands again.

"What's going on in here?" a voice asks, and he turns to see Jade standing in the doorway in her dark green slip, smiling at them.

"Mommy!" Lian exclaims, running over to Jade and hugging her tightly by the waist. "Happy Mother's Day, Mommy," Lian tells her, and Jade's eyes are like, instantly watery. She tells Lian _thank you_ as she lifts her up and kisses her cheek, and Roy smiles and wraps his arms around them.

She cries every Mother's Day.

And he knows it's because Jade doesn't really _grasp_ that it's for her.

When she first got pregnant, she'd told him that she didn't think she could be a good mother. Her relationship with Paula is fine _now_, but it wasn't at all that way when she was growing up, and it's not like she could pick up parenting skills from her father. She sort of got a taste of what it was like from being home alone with Artemis a lot, but they were both small and it was scary more than anything else.

She'd said, in so many words, that she thought she was beyond saving and that she honestly didn't deserve things like love and family.

Now she has both of those things and _more_, and while she is infinitely more comfortable and natural in this life that she'd made for herself, he thinks a small part of her is secretly afraid that something is going to ruin it all or take it all away from her.

So he kind of brings both of his girls as close as physically possible, kisses Jade and whispers, "Happy Mother's Day, Jade."

... ...

They're supposed to be leaving in a few minutes, and Kaldur cannot for the life of him find his wife.

He had thought Raquel would be in their room getting ready, because it's warm today and they'd gone for a swim in their pool after eating breakfast on their backyard terrace. Now that it's nearing summer and the days are consistently nicer, Raquel wants to be in the pool all the time.

Of course he is happy to oblige.

He knows it's also because she loves it when Cory swims. Their son is a _natural_ swimmer, even at such a young age. You can just tell by watching him and it fascinates her. Plus, it's pretty much the perfect way for them to wind down from their days, because being in the water is relaxing and refreshing, and when they get out and shower and eat dinner, they're all ready to fall asleep.

When Raquel had insisted they go for a swim after their early breakfast this morning, he was worried at first because he didn't want them to be too tired for their picnic later, but she'd convinced him that they'd be perfectly replenished by noon.

Then after showering first and getting dressed, he'd left to pick up the cakes from the bakery while Raquel and Cory got ready.

Now he can't seem to find her.

Cory, on the other hand, is already changed and ready to go. He's sitting at the kitchen counter and eating sliced fruits from a bowl as he watches one of those children's channels. They usually limit how often he's in front of a screen, but they _do_ let him watch because they know the right kind of television programming can be immensely educational.

There's a woman on the screen talking about dolphins, and Kaldur kind of _has_ to smile at the way Cory's eyes light up when the creature squeals in delight and does a flip.

"Where is your mother, Cory?" Kaldur asks.

"She said she needed to go get something from the office," Cory informs. "Are we leaving for the picnic now?"

"As soon as your mother is ready, yes." Kaldur grins. "When you are finished with your snack, do not forget to wash your dishes and put them in the strainer. I will go get your mother."

Cory nods in understanding before turning back to the dolphin on the screen.

Kaldur makes his way to the other end of the house, wondering what Raquel would need to do before leaving. Neither of them spends much time in the office, as it's mainly a place to store supplies and their many books. If they absolutely have to concentrate, or need to print something, they'll come in here. But if they ever bring home work, they do it in the family room so they can all be together.

When he walks in through the open doorway, he finds Raquel standing there, cutting away at the glossy paper in her hands.

"Raquel?"

She jumps just a little as she makes the last cut, the excess paper falling to the desk as she smiles at him and says, "_Geez_, you scared me!"

"I am sorry for startling you," he apologizes, making his way over to her. "May I ask what you are doing?"

She laughs a little and sets the scissors down. "Well, so much for waiting until lunch…"

He frowns slightly in confusion.

"I have a surprise for you," she explains.

"Raquel, it is Mother's Day. If anything, I should be giving _you_ things."

She just smiles at him and places a hand on his cheek. "Trust me, this is for the both of us," she tells him, taking his hand and opening his palm so she can slip something into it—a photo. More specifically, the photo itself shows off a slim device he's seen before and there's a bright pink plus sign staring back up at him.

"Raquel," he breathes, and when he looks at her, she's biting her lower lip a little as if to keep from smiling any wider than she already is. "When did you—"

"Last night I took two and then another one this morning," she admits. "I just wanted to be sure, since you never know. But I _am_ late this month."

"So that means—"

"Our family just got a little bit bigger," she finishes, nodding at him, and he exhales a laugh before pulling her closer and bringing their lips together. He feels her slip her arms around his neck, leaning into him, and he presses their foreheads together when he breaks the kiss. "Now comes the fun part."

He smiles, already knowing the words before she draws the breath to say them.

"How do we want to tell Cory?"

... ...

If he's being honest, Conner thinks it's kind of hilarious when you put all of their kids together.

He knows that it's bad if they get into fights and stuff, but they all have so many different personalities and they're pretty much around the same ages, so it's inevitable. He tries not to laugh (because M'gann gives him this _glare_ and stays mad at him for _hours_ for being "insensitive"), but it's pretty hard not to when you've got all of these kids trying to kill each other.

It's always Damian and Lian that start it, too, because those two just cannot get along. Lian is usually freakishly calm for a first grader, but something about Damian just rubs her the wrong way. Granted, Damian is usually the instigator, but Lian doesn't ever back down from him. Then you've got Jayden and Ellie, and their fights usually stem from the commotion of Damian and Lian. Ellie's got this _attitude_ when she's mad, and of course Jayden refuses to back down once she's started something. And then Maria and Sienna (Mal and Karen's daughter) pretty much hate each other, which is odd because it's just not in either of their demeanors to be so _mean_.

Andrew (Marvin and Wendy's son) and Cory are usually the only ones that kind of keep it together. Except, Cory tries to calm down his friends whereas Andrew doesn't want to get in the middle of it, so Andrew'll occupy himself with his handheld for a little and sometimes Cory gets frustrated with him because Andrew isn't trying to help, and then _those_ two get kind of tense with each other.

Seriously, most amusing kids _ever_.

It's Maria and Sienna that start it this time, though, because Sienna was teasing Maria over something. And since she and Ellie are joined at the hip, of course Ellie has to go and defend her, and of course Jayden has to argue with his sister. Damian always takes Jayden's side, so Lian takes Maria's side, and then chaos ensues.

"Elizabeth Jade, do _not _kick people," Artemis groans, tugging her daughter back by her dress before turning to glare at her husband, "Wallace Rudolph West, I know you're not smiling over there!"

Wally's probably the only other person other than Conner who'll laugh when all hell breaks loose. They _all_ find it amusing and the others just know better than to actually _show_ it, but then it escalates to a certain point and everyone realizes that they have to step in before kids wind up going home with scratches and bruises (which _has_ happened once or twice).

"Of course not, babe," Wally sighs, taking Elizabeth from her so she can get Jayden.

Zatanna is sitting down on the bench of the picnic table with Maria on her lap, facing her, and Dick standing beside them while muttering things to get Maria to calm down. Mal's got Sienna in his arms while Karen is trying to get the dirt off of the girl's dress, and they both look exasperated because Sienna is refusing to talk to either of her parents.

"I hate that they don't get along," M'gann says beside him. She's _pouting_ like she always does when the kids fight and he just shakes his head and laces their fingers together.

"They'll grow out of it," he reminds.

"It's still _sad_ that we're all so close but the kids aren't."

"It took time for all of _us_ to get along," he points out, "and we were older than they are. They'll get over it." She gives him a look and he just shrugs because, what? It's true, isn't it?

Besides, it's not like they just hate each other all the time, fight and go home. After they've got the fighting out of their system, they apologize and sometimes hug things out. Then their parents will sit them together for their snacks, they'll laugh and say kid things to each other and after they're done eating, they're getting along just fine and that will be that.

They're _kids_—of course they're not going to fully appreciate each other until they're older.

"At least we can learn from our friends so we're prepared," Conner says, completely louder than necessary.

"Conner," M'gann breathes, looking at him with widening eyes.

He winks at her because he knows _exactly_ what he's doing, and everyone around them sort of quiets down. He doesn't know why the kids are quiet, but it's probably because their parents are. "I mean, this time next year, we'll be celebrating you, too."

Raquel is the first one to react, and that's to squeal and throw her arms around M'gann.

Then everyone is suddenly around them (well, mostly around M'gann but he's entirely okay with that) and congratulating them. Past their friends' heads and shoulders, Conner sees Damian nudge Lian's shoulder and whisper something to her that makes her squeal, and then all of the other kids are sort of crowding around them and asking what's going on.

"Auntie Megan is having a baby!"


End file.
